The Federal Bureau of Investigation sought to question one of Milwaukee County’s top election officials about the 2020 presidential election, according to the County Clerk’s Office.
In a statement on May 13, Milwaukee County Clerk George Christenson said agents visited the county’s elections director, Michelle Hawley, at her home and left her a business card.
“It is unfortunate that the FBI chose to visit the private residence of Milwaukee County’s Elections Director rather than contact the Election Commission’s office directly,” the statement said. “No dedicated public servant should be subjected to that type of intrusion simply for carrying out her responsibilities with integrity and professionalism.”
“While we cooperate with all legitimate law enforcement actions, we will defend against any attack on our democracy and will defend the rights of voters of Milwaukee County. Our responsibility as election officials is to safeguard the integrity of the process through facts, transparency, and adherence to the law, and the record clearly demonstrates that those standards were met in 2020,” Christenson said.
Shortly after County Executive David Crowley issued a statement in which he said that President Donald Trump’s “ongoing attempts to relitigate the 2020 election, which he lost, have crossed a line” and condemned efforts to send FBI agents to Hawley’s private residence.
“Milwaukee County officials will always cooperate with law enforcement officers and the investigations they are pursuing, but this action raises serious concerns of intimidation,” said Crowley, who is running for governor. “Regardless of how this situation evolves, the facts are clear: In 2020, election clerks did their jobs. The election was safe and secure. Donald Trump lost the popular vote in Wisconsin.”
“No amount of fear and intimidation from the Trump administration will change that truth,” Crowley said.
A spokesperson for the FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Hawley took over the top position following the departure of then Milwaukee County Elections Director Julietta Henry in 2022. She previously served as deputy elections director.
Confirmation of the probe came after the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that the FBI launched an official investigation into Wisconsin’s 2020 election and that an agent had spoken with the Wisconsin Elections Commission’s deputy administrator, Robert Kehoe, and discussed how elections are handled in the state.
According to sources, the FBI’s investigation is in a “preliminary phase,” focusing on vetting previous complaints. No ballots have been seized in Wisconsin, the sources confirmed at the time.
President Donald Trump has repeated false claims that he won the 2020 election as his efforts to overturn election results in other battleground states continue to fail. A recount in Milwaukee and Dane Counties paid by Trump’s campaign, court rulings, a state audit as well as a conservative review by a law firm that pursues conservative interests have all confirmed that Trump lost.
Joe Biden defeated Trump in Wisconsin by about 21,000 votes.
For the last year, election officials have been on high alert since the start of the year when federal investigators seized hundreds of boxes tied to the 2020 election in Fulton County, Georgia. Concerns have also grown after FBI issued a grand jury subpoena in March for voting information in Maricopa County, Arizona.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: FBI sought to question Milwaukee County election official
Reporting by Vanessa Swales, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
